Grace Gems for August

(Charles Simeon)

"Man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward!" Job 5:7

"Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble!" Job 14:1

"Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows." John 16:33

It is true that our afflictions are great and manifold. Yet we have no reason for complaint, when we know that our afflictions are all ordered in number, measure, and duration—for our best and greatest good, according to the counsels of God's infinite wisdom and love!

We have no reason for complaint, when we are assured that our afflictions are the very things which we would choose for ourselves, if we saw the outcome of them as clearly as God sees it!

If we view our afflictions in this way, we shall receive even the most painful of God's dispensations as blessings in disguise!

"Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey Your Word!" Psalm 119:67

"It was good for me to be afflicted, so that I might learn Your decrees." Psalm 119:71

"I know, O LORD, that your laws are righteous, and in faithfulness You have afflicted me." Psalm 119:75

"We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

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"The hope of the hypocrite shall perish!
What he trusts in is fragile; what he relies on is a spider's web.
He leans on his web, but it gives way; he clings to it, but it does not hold."
Job 8:13-15

Many professing Christians appear fine to others, but are themselves under the dominion of some besetting sin. They are secretly indulging pride, envy, malice, covetousness, lewdness, or some other bosom lust. They do not live near to God in their secret chamber, or aspire after conformity to His will as revealed in His Word. They are more anxious to appear pious, than to be so; and to be applauded by men, than to be approved by God.

It rarely happens that a hypocrite continues long to deceive those who are intimately acquainted with his private habits. He cannot maintain a consistency of character, for lack of an inward principle of saving grace.

Hypocrites eventually "make shipwreck either of their faith or of a good conscience." Lot's wife was a monument of a hypocrite in the Old Testament, and Demas was a monument of a hypocrite in the New. Just so, similar monuments of a hypocrite are yet found in every church today!

Let us follow the hypocrite into the eternal world—what is his condition there?

Alas! alas! However high he was in his own estimation or in that of others—he is now fallen indeed; and all his towering hopes are now swept away with the broom of destruction! Even while he is here carrying on his deception, though it is unsuspected by himself or others, and though his hypocrisy is not in act, but in heart only—he is "treasuring up wrath for himself" for "the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Christ Jesus!"

Possibly he may carry his hope with him into the eternal world, and almost presume to argue with his omniscient Judge. But "He will say to them, I never knew you! Depart from me, you who practice iniquity!" And then their state shall be so superlatively wretched, that those who sink the deepest into perdition are said to "take their portion with the hypocrites!"

"But the wicked will lose hope.
They have no escape.
Their hope becomes despair." Job 11:20

"Where is The hope of the hypocrite, when God takes away his soul?" Job 27:8

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I would not live forever!

(Charles Simeon) LISTEN to Audio! Download Audio

"I loathe my life; I would not live forever!" Job 7:16

When afflictions render us weary of life, we show that we have forgotten the promise of Jehovah to make all things work together for our good.

When we know that medicine is operating for our good—we disregard the uneasiness that it occasions; and are contented even to pay for the prescriptions, from a confidence that we shall be benefitted by them in the outcome.

Just so, would we not welcome the prescriptions of our heavenly Physician, if we duly considered His unerring wisdom and love? Instead of repining and murmuring on account of God's afflictive dispensations, we should rest satisfied that our heavenly Father knows best!

Man, as a sinner, deserves the curse of the law and the wrath of God. If we bore this in mind—would we not say, even under the most accumulated trials, "You have punished us less than our iniquities deserve!" Ezra 9:13

Would not a recollection of our actual deservings from God of wrath and Hell, constrain us to cry, "Shall a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?" Lamentations 3:39

We would not be so fretful under our sufferings, if only we bore in mind that instead of being put into the "furnace of affliction," we should, if dealt with according to our deserts, be cast into the furnace of Hell!

(Octavius Winslow) LISTEN to audio! Download audio

Jesus is the one great theme both of the Old Testament and the New. The whole Bible is designed to testify of Christ, "The Scriptures point to Me!" John 5:39

In Christ the Messiah,
in Jesus the Savior,
in the Son of God the Redeemer
—all the truths of the Bible center.

To Him all the types and shadows point!

Of Him all the prophecies give witness!

All the glory of the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation—culminates at the cross of Christ!

The Bible would be an inexplicable mystery apart from Christ, who unfolds and explains it all.

He is the golden Key which unlocks the divine treasury of Scriptural revelation!

Until He is seen, the Bible is, in a sense—a great mystery. But when He is found, it is a glorious revelation.
Every mystery is opened,
every enigma is explained,
every discrepancy is harmonized, and
every truth and page, sentence and word—is quickened with a life and glowing with a light flowing down from the throne of the Eternal God.

Christ is the substance of the Gospel.
All its divine doctrines,
all its holy precepts,
all its gracious instructions,
all its precious promises,
all its glorious hopes—
meet, center, and fill up their entire compass in Jesus!

He is the Alpha and the Omega of the Bible—from the first verse in Genesis to the last verse in Revelation.

Oh, study the Scriptures of truth with a view of learning Christ.

Do not study the Bible as a mere history.
Do not read it as a mere poem.
Do not search it as a book of science.
It is all that, but infinitely more.
The Bible is the Book of Jesus!
It is a Revelation of Christ!

Christ is the golden thread which runs through the whole!

Blessed Lord Jesus! I will read and study and dig into the Scriptures, to find and learn more of You!
You, Immanuel, are the fragrance of this divine box of precious ointment.
You are the beauteous gem sparkling in this divine cabinet.
You are the Tree of life planted in the center of this divine garden.
You are the Ocean whose stream quickens and nourishes all who draw water out of this divine well of salvation.
The Bible is all about You!

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(Thomas Watson, "A Divine Cordial" 1663) LISTEN to Audio! Download Audio

Grace changes the heart!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
the old has gone, the new has come!" 2 Corinthians 5:17

The true Christian has a great change wrought.
Not a change of the faculties, but of the tendencies.
He is altered from what he was before.
His body is the same, but not his mind.
Oh what a metamorphosis does grace make!

There is a change wrought in the UNDERSTANDING.
Before, there was ignorance, but now there is light. The first work of God in the creation of the world was light, likewise it is in the new creation. He now says, "I once was blind, but now I see!" John 9:25

He sees such evil in sin, and excellency in the ways of God—as he never saw before! It is a marvelous light, because it is more penetrating. Other light may shine upon the face—but this light shines into the heart and enlightens the conscience. 2 Corinthians 4:6

There is a change wrought in the WILL.
The will, which before opposed Christ, now embraces Him. The will, which was an iron sinew against Christ, is now like melting wax, and readily receives the stamp and impression of the Holy Spirit. The will now moves heavenward, and carries all the affections along with it. The will now says, "Lord! What will you have me to do?" Acts 9:6. Before, the will kept Christ out; now, it keeps sin out! Oh what a happy change is wrought here!

There is a change wrought in the CONDUCT.
He who is saved, walks directly contrary to what he did before. He once walked in envy and malice; now he walks in love! He once walked in pride; now he walks in humility. In the heart there is a new birth, and in the life there is a new conduct.

Thus we see what a mighty change grace makes.

How far are they from salvation, who never had any change! They are the same today, as they were forty or fifty years ago. They are as proud and carnal as ever! They have had no change in their heart. Let not them think to leap out of the harlot's lap (the world) into Abraham's bosom! They must either have a gracious change while they live, or a cursed change when they die!

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(Charles Simeon) LISTEN to Audio! Download Audio

"Do not let him who is deceived trust in vanity;
for vanity shall be his recompense." Job 15:31

People are universally deceived through the influence of:
their own corrupt hearts,
a tempting world,
and a subtle adversary!
And that deception manifests itself particularly in the "trust" which they place in "lying vanities."

They think themselves to be possessed of goodness and righteousness in such a degree, as to warrant their expectation of happiness and blessedness in the eternal world.

But if you dare to tell them from God's Word, that they are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked—they will deny your opinions as utterly false, and ridicule them as madness!

They have no idea that they need:
the influence of the Holy Spirit to enlighten their minds,
or the blood of Christ to atone for their sins,
or the grace of Christ to renovate their hearts.

They do not perceive that in Jesus there is a fullness of all that they can need for time and eternity, and that in Him alone there is:
wisdom for the blind,
righteousness for the guilty,
sanctification for the polluted,
and redemption for the enslaved!
Jesus is all of this to those who trust in Him!

"Do not let him who is deceived trust in vanity;
for vanity shall be his recompense." Job 15:31

"Those who observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy." Jonah 2:8

"This is what the LORD says: Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD!" Jeremiah 17:5

"Professing to be wise, they became fools!" Romans 1:22

"For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe!" 1 Corinthians 1:19-21

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"Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction!" Isaiah 48:10

"I will refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested." Zechariah 13:9

"He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold!" Job 23:1

Though Job was presently in as hot a furnace as he could possibly endure—he yet believed that he was put into it by a skillful Refiner, for the purifying of his soul from dross.

Those who are truly godly, learn to view the hand of God both in their comforts and in their troubles. They know that affliction does not come by chance, but from the hand of Him who directs everything with consummate wisdom. "Affliction does not come from the dust, nor does trouble spring from the ground!" Job 5:6

The ungodly look no further than to second causes; and therefore yield to murmuring and impatience whenever they receive harm from the hand of their fellow-creatures.

But the godly are persuaded that their portion, whatever it is—is mixed for them by God Himself, and that it is intended "to purge away their iniquity," that they may be partakers of His holiness. This was evidently the view which Job had of troubles, notwithstanding they sprang from such various sources.

No one can love trouble on its own account; since it is "never joyous, but grievous." But holiness is the highest wish of the godly soul; it is regarded as a pearl that cannot be purchased at too high a price. Trials, however painful, are welcomed, if they may but be the means of promoting this blessed end.

Those who are in the furnace of affliction must ever look above all second causes, and see God appointing the nature, measure, and duration of all their trials!

"Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty!" Job 5:17

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good, to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose!" Romans 8:28

"God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:10-11

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"The kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls. Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it!" Matthew 13:45-46

Worldliness is the besetting sin of most professing Christians! It is certain that very many of them are as eager in the pursuit of wealth as the heathen.

This accounts for the little influence of the Word of God upon them. The seed is good, but the soil is bad! And the noxious weeds of worldliness, by their speedy and incessant growth, keep down the feebler plants of piety in the soul.
"The cares of this world,
and the deceitfulness of riches,
and the lust for other things,
choke the Word, and it becomes unfruitful." Mark 4:19

But please note that it is not the overt act of covetousness or creature-dependence that is condemned, but the inward disposition of the mind and heart. The supreme delight of mind that arises from the possession of wealth, is itself a denial of the sufficiency of Christ to be our desired portion and treasure.

O, brethren, enter into your own bosoms, and judge yourselves in relation to this matter. Inquire whether Christ has such a full possession of your hearts, as to render all earthly things relatively vain, empty, and worthless, in your estimation. If not, then how can you call Christ your desired portion, or imagine that you have formed a proper estimate of the immeasurable blessings of salvation? Know assuredly, that if you have proper views of Christ, you will regard Him as your Pearl of Great Price!

Can you sincerely say from your inmost soul,
"Whom have I in Heaven but You?
And earth has nothing I desire besides You.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength
of my heart and my portion forever!" Psalm 73:25-26

A true profession of Christ does not consists in a mere assent to some particular truths of Scripture, but in a practical and experimental sense of His love to us, overpowering all inferior desires.

To love the Lord Jesus,
to cleave to Him with full purpose of heart,
to count him as "all our salvation and all our desire"
—this is what He requires.
This is also what our blessed Savior deserves from each of His redeemed people.

If we do not despise worldly trifles, when standing in competition with His will, His presence, and His glory—then He shall regard us as denying Him, and we must expect to be denied by Him in the judgment day!

Would a man who had scraped together a great heap of dust, rejoice because he had gathered so much dust? Surely not! In the same way, does not the foolish satisfaction which a man feels from the attainment of riches, show that he has formed an erroneous estimate of their value?

God has called Himself "the Fountain of living waters," and has pronounced all creatures to be "broken cisterns that will hold no water." Just so, an undue regard to wealth denies that God is the ultimate source of happiness, and that He is all-sufficient for our real happiness. See to it then, brethren, that it is not thus with you!

If you are disposed to ask, "Who will show me any good?" Then learn immediately to add: "Lord, lift up the light of Your countenance upon me, and that shall fill my heart with greater joy than any amount of wealth could ever do!"

For as, on the one hand, "A man's life does not consist in the abundance of the things that he possesses." So, on the other hand, "In God's favor is life, and His loving-kindness is better than life itself!"

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We live in a world of mysteries! They . . .
meet our eye,
awaken our inquiry, and
baffle our investigation at every step.

Nature is a vast arcade of mysteries.
Science is a mystery.
Truth is a mystery.
Religion is a mystery.
Our existence is a mystery.
The future of our being is a mystery.

And God, who alone can explain all mysteries, is the greatest mystery of all! How little do we understand of the inexplicable wonders of a wonder working God, "whose thoughts are a great deep," and "whose ways are past finding out."

But to God, nothing is mysterious.
In His purpose, nothing is unfixed.
In His forethought, nothing is unknown.
In His providence, nothing is contingent.

His glance pierces the future as vividly as it beholds the past.
"He knows the end from the beginning."

All His doings are parts of a divine, eternal, and harmonious plan!

He may make ''darkness His secret place; His pavilion round about Him dark waters;" and to human vision, His dispensations may appear gloomy, discrepant, and confused. Yet He is "working all things after the counsel of His own will," and all is transparent and harmonious to His eye!

"For all can see that wise men die; the foolish and the senseless alike perish and leave their wealth to others." Psalm 49:10

"It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment!" Hebrews 9:27

Nothing can be more certain than that we shall all die. The grave is "the house appointed for all the living." Whether we have lived in a palace or a cottage—the grave is the house in which we must all abide at last!

The certainty of death should moderate our regards to the transient things of this world.

We are not greatly elated with the comforts of an inn, where we are to stop but an hour; nor are we greatly depressed with any lack of comforts which we may find there. The thought of our stay there being so short, renders us comparatively indifferent to the present accommodations.

All is but a pageant passing by; and whether the spectacle is mournful or joyous—it is scarcely arrived, than it vanishes from before our eyes!

Our joys and our sorrows will both appear light and momentary, when viewed in reference to the transitoriness of what is visible, and the endless duration of invisible realities! "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal!" 2 Corinthians 4:18

The certainty of death should make us diligent in preparing for the eternal world.

To know that death and the grave are ready to swallow us up, and yet to trifle with the eternal interests of the soul, which, if neglected now, are gone forever—this, I say, is a madness, which credulity itself could never imagine to exist, if its existence were not daily and hourly before our eyes!

We must ever live in the light of eternal realities! Christians should look forward to their death with joy, accounting it to be their greatest gain! Philippians 1:21; and placing it among their choicest treasures! 1 Corinthians 3:22

"So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom!" Psalm 90:12

(Thomas Watson, "Until My Change Comes") LISTEN to Audio! Download Audio

"All the days of my appointed time will I wait until my change comes." Job 14:14

That is, I will wait until my death comes.

Death, whenever it comes, makes a great change.

Death will make a certain change; there is no avoiding it.
"No one can live forever; all will die.
No one can escape the power of the grave!" Psalm 89:48.

It is neither strength, nor courage, nor any worldly grandeur—which can exempt from death. The godly must die, as well as others. Though death does not destroy the treasure of grace—yet death breaks the vessel that this treasure is in.

We are not so sure to lie down in our beds, as we are to lie down in our graves!

Our days are certain to God, but they are uncertain to us. The Lord alone, knows how long our hour-glass will be running. For all we know, there are but a few sands more to run. Life may expire in an instant. When we breath out, we never know whether we will ever take a breath in again!

Death will make a visible change. One scarcely knows their friends, they are so disfigured by death! The eyes are hollow, the jaws are fallen; death carries away all the goodly spoil of beauty. It changes a living body, into a foul carcass. Psalm 39:11, "You make his beauty to consume like a moth." Take a body of the finest spinning, once death like a moth gets into it, it consumes all the luster and glory of it. Death puts the body into such a frightful state—that nothing can desire it but worms!

Death will make an unalterable change.
As the tree falls—so it lies to eternity.

Death is a change which puts us into an unchangeable condition!

"It is appointed unto men once to die, and after that to face judgment!" Hebrews 9:27

(Octavius Winslow) LISTEN to audio!   Download audio

"He has done all things well!" Mark 7:37

Yes, from first to last,
from our cradle to our grave,
from the earliest pang of sin's conviction to the last thrill of sin's forgiveness,
from earth to Heaven—this will be our testimony in all the way the Lord our
God has led us in the wilderness: "He has done all things well!"

In providence and in grace,
in every truth of His Word,
in every lesson of His love,
in every stroke of His rod,
in every sunbeam that has shone,
in every cloud that has shaded,
in every element that has sweetened,
in every ingredient that has embittered,
in all that has been mysterious, inscrutable, painful, and humiliating,
in all that He gave,
in all that He took away,
this testimony is His just due, and this our grateful acknowledgment
through time and through eternity: "He has done all things well!"

Has He converted us through grace by a way we had thought the most improbable?

Has He torn up all our earthly hopes by the roots?

Has He . . .
thwarted our schemes,
frustrated our plans,
disappointed our expectations?

Has He . . .
   taught us in schools most trying,
   by a discipline most severe,
   and lessons most humbling to our nature?

Has He . . .
withered our strength by sickness,
reduced us to poverty by loss,
crushed our heart by bereavement?

And have we been tempted to exclaim, "All these things are against me!"

Ah! no! faith will yet obtain the ascendancy, and sweetly sing:
    "I know in all things that befell,
     My Jesus has done all things well!"

Beloved, it must be so—for Jesus can do nothing wrong!

Study the way of His providence and grace with the microscopic eye of faith—view them in every light, examine them in their minutest detail, as you would the petal of a flower, or the wing of an insect; and, oh, what wonders, what beauty, what marvelous adaptation, would you observe in all the varied dealings with you, of your glorious Lord!

(Octavius Winslow, "The Lord's Prayer" 1866) LISTEN to audio! Download audio

"Only acknowledge your guilt! Admit that you rebelled against the Lord your God and committed adultery against Him by worshiping idols under every green tree. Confess that you refused to follow Me. I, the Lord, have spoken!" Jeremiah 3:13

God has laid great stress in His word upon the confession of sin. How touching His language addressed to His backsliding people, whose backslidings were of a most aggravated character; than which none could have been of deeper guilt, seeing that they had committed the sin of idolatry!

"Only acknowledge your guilt!" This was all that He required at their hands. "Only acknowledge."

Poor penitent soul, bending in tears and self reproaches over this page; read these words again and again, and yet again—until they have scattered all your dark, repelling thoughts of this sin forgiving God, winning you to His feet as His restored and comforted child, "only acknowledge your guilt."

"What Lord! After all that I have done, after . . .
my base returns,
my repeated wanderings,
my aggravated transgressions,
my complicated iniquity,
my sins against conviction, light, and love
—do You still stretch out your hand to me, a poor, wretched wanderer as I am?
Do You go forth to meet, to welcome, to pardon me?
Do You watch . . .
the first kindling of penitence,
the first tear of contrition,
the first word of confession, 'Father, I have sinned!'

Lord, I fall at Your feet, the greatest of sinners!
Your power has drawn me,
Your love has subdued me,
Your grace has conquered me!"

(Charles Simeon) LISTEN to Audio!   Download Audio

"Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for His wrath can flare up in a moment!" Psalm 2:12a

By "kissing the Son," we are to understand . . .
  love to Christ's person,
  devotion to Christ's service,
  submission to Christ's authority.

Since the Lord Jesus is . . .
the blessed and only Potentate,
the King of kings,
and Lord of lords,
then love, devotion, and submission to Him are our truest wisdom, and the only true path of genuine blessedness. For what blessedness can they have, who are liable to the wrath of God? If His wrath flares up against you—could you endure the thought of meeting His displeasure? Are you stronger than God? Will you provoke Him to jealousy? No! The most careless of mankind, if he reflects at all, must be sensible that "it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God!"

"How blessed are all who put their trust in Him!" Psalm 2:12b
They shall be protected by His power.
They shall be preserved by His grace.
They shall be enriched by His bounty.
They shall be blessed by Him with all spiritual blessings.
And in the last day, they shall be seated with Him on His throne,
and be partakers of His glory for evermore!

A saving trust in Christ renders a man inconceivably blessed!
It brings peace into his soul.
It obtains for him the forgiveness of all his sins.
It secures "grace sufficient for him," and "strength according to his day."
It makes him "blessed" in every state . . .
in health or sickness,
in wealth or poverty,
in life or death.
It entitles him to an incorruptible and undefiled inheritance in Heaven!
No person who ever possessed sincere trust in Christ, ever perished.

Glory and honor and immortality are the portion of all who sincerely trust in Christ as their Lord and Savior!
If you have any desire to escape the wrath to come, or to lay hold on eternal life—then this is the sure, the only way of attaining your end.

If you neglect Christ—then whatever else you either are, or have, or do—it will avail you nothing; and you must perish everlastingly! Love the Lord Jesus Christ, and give yourselves up to Him; and notwithstanding your past, present, or future sins—You shall never perish, but shall have everlasting life!

Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself!

(Charles Simeon) LISTEN to Audio! Download Audio

"Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself!" Psalm 4:3

Who are the special objects of God's favor?

The world is divided into only two kinds of men—the godly and the ungodly.

The godly are to be distinguished from the ungodly, by a great variety of marks:

   1. The godly fear God.

The generality of people sin without any shame or remorse, Ephesians 4:18-19. But the godly can no longer proceed in such an evil course, 1 Peter 4:2-3.
They humble themselves before God for their past offences.
They guard against sinning against Him, even in thought! 2 Corinthians 10:5.

2. The godly love God.

They are not actuated by a merely slavish fear.
They have the Spirit of adoption given to them, Galatians 4:5.
They sincerely delight to do their Father's will, Romans 7:22.
They account the enjoyment of His favor to be their highest happiness, Psalm 4:6-7.

   3. The godly serve God.

Their religion does not consist in mere ineffectual feelings.
It is obvious to all that they are God's servants.
They perform even their civil and social duties with a reference to God, Romans 13:5-6.
They do everything with a view to God's glory, 1 Corinthians 10:31.

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What are the special honors which God confers upon the godly?

God has "set them apart," as distinct from those who perish.

   1. He has set the godly apart secretly, in His eternal purpose.

His regard for them did not commence after they became godly. Their godliness is the fruit of His love to them, and not the cause of His love! Jeremiah 31:3, 2 Timothy 1:9, Ephesians 1:4, and Romans 8:29-30. He loved them and set His heart upon them, from eternity past!

   2. He has also set the godly apart openly, when He effectually calls them by His grace.

In time, God effectually calls and converts all whom He chose in eternity past.
He inclines and enables them to come out from the world, 2 Corinthians 6:17-18.
He causes them to devote themselves to His service, 1 Peter 2:9.

   3. He has also set the godly apart, for Himself.

He makes their souls His own habitation, 2 Corinthians 6:16.
He sheds abroad His love in their hearts by His Holy Spirit.
He preserves them as living monuments of His power and grace.
He regards them as His own treasured possession, Psalm 135:4.

"Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself!"

"You are:
a chosen people,
a royal priesthood,
a holy nation,
a people belonging to God,
that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9

(Thomas Watson) LISTEN to Audio!   Download Audio

Saving grace is the infusion of new and holy principles into the heart, whereby it is changed from what it was, and is made more and more into Christ's image. Grace infuses . . .
light into the understanding,
tenderness into the conscience,
consent into the will, and
harmony into the affections.
Yes, grace is like leaven, pervading the whole man until all is leavened.

Grace is a string of pearls, with which the Church (Christ's Bride) is adorned.

The heart inlaid and enameled with grace, is like the "King's daughter, all glorious within." A gracious soul is the image of Christ, skillfully drawn with the pencil of the Holy Spirit. A heart beautified with grace is God's lesser Heaven, "I dwell in the high and lofty place, and also with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit." Grace humbles, yet elevates.

Grace is the flower of the soul, which fragrance Christ delights to savor.
Grace is to the soul, what . . .
the eye is to the body,
the sun is to the world,
the diamond is to the ring.

Grace makes the heart a spiritual temple which has this inscription on it, "Holiness unto the Lord!"

The believer's graces are . . .
  weapons to defend them,
  wings to elevate them,
  jewels to enrich them,
  spices to perfume them,
  stars to adorn them,
  cordials to revive them, and
  evidences for Heaven, when death is near.

When grace flourishes, sin cannot thrive!

Grace is Christ's portrait drawn on the soul.

The river of grace can never be dried up, for the Spirit of God is the spring which feeds it.

Here on earth, Christ puts His graces upon His spouse; in Heaven He will put His glory upon her.

The words before us are a plain and unequivocal declaration from God Himself respecting the doom which awaits every impenitent sinner. May God impress our minds with a solemn awe as we consider them.

Who does God regard as being wicked?

God's Word ought to be the invariable rule of our conduct.
It should be our constant inquiry:
What is my duty?
What does God command me in His Word?

2. God regards all those as wicked in His sight, who are forgetful of His benefits.

Every day and hour of our lives we have been laden with mercies by a kind and bountiful Benefactor. And should not God's mercies to us, have excited correspondent emotions of gratitude in our hearts?

3. God regards all those as wicked in His sight, who are unmindful of His presence.

God is everywhere present, and every object around us has this inscription upon it, "You see me O God!" Now it is our duty and privilege to walk with God as His friends, and to set Him before us all the day long.

What will be the final doom of the wicked?

The word "Hell" sometimes imports no more than the grave. But here it must mean something far more awful, because the righteous go into the grave as well as the most vile.

Men in general do not wish to hear this place so much as mentioned, much less described—as the portion of the wicked. But it is far better to hear of Hell, than to dwell in Hell!

Our Lord very frequently labors to deter men from sin by the consideration of its terrors, "But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into Hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!" Luke 12:5

Who that reflects upon that "lake of fire and brimstone," where the wicked "dwell with everlasting burnings," and "weep, and wail, and gnash their teeth," without so much as the smallest hope of deliverance from it; and where "the smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever;" who that considers what it must be to have the devils for our companions, and to have the vials of God's wrath poured out upon us without intermission and without end—who that considers these things, must not tremble at the thought of taking up his eternal abode in that place!

Now scoffers make light of eternal torments, and sneer at the denunciations of God's wrath. But before long they will call out "to the mountains and the rocks: Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!" However reluctant they are to obey the divine mandate, "Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels"—they must be "turned into Hell" with irresistible force and with fiery indignation!

Their numbers will not at all secure them against God's threatened vengeance. Though there are whole "nations," they will not be able to withstand the omnipotent arm of God; nor will they excite pity in God's heart. Neither will their misery be the less, because of the multitudes who partake of it. For instead of alleviating one another's sorrows with tender sympathy—they will accuse one another with the bitterest invectives.

The power and veracity of God are pledged to execute this judgment; and sooner shall Heaven and earth be annihilated, than one jot or tittle of His Word shall fail!

Men seem as careless and indifferent about their eternal interests as if they had nothing to fear; or as if God had promised that the wicked would be received into Heaven! O that they would awake from their delusive dreams, and flee from the wrath to come!

Many think it a harsh thing that so heavy a judgment should be denounced merely for forgetting God.

Shall they say to God: "Depart from us, we do not desire the knowledge of Your ways!"

And shall God be accused of injustice if He says to them: "Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!" Matthew 25:41

Man's contempt of God!

(Charles Simeon) LISTEN to Audio! Download Audio

"He says to himself, 'God has forgotten; He covers His face and never sees!'" Psalm 10:11

"Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself: He won't call me to account!" Psalm 10:13

Were all the lineaments of man's contempt of God to be drawn—we would scarcely ever finish the dreadful portrait!

We make light of:
the Father's authority,
the Son's sin-atoning sacrifice,
the Spirit's influence in regeneration.
Every office They sustain,
every attribute They possess,
every relation They bear to us
—we disregard and dishonor. We . . .
overlook God's providence,
are unmindful of His Word,
neglect His ordinances,
and despise His people.

God's thoughts respecting the nature and malignity of sin, are widely different from those which are entertained in the hearts of natural men. Men consider themselves as innocent if their outward conduct is not grossly reprehensible; and what they cannot justify in their actions, they mitigate under lenient expressions.

But God notices the very frame and dispositions of the heart!
He clearly and infallibly interprets the language of men's thoughts!
He declares that the wickedness of their actions, proceeds from the atheism in their hearts.
"The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God!' They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good!" Psalm 14:1

Men evidence by their lives, that they think God will not require an account of their sin. They imagine that sin may be indulged with impunity, as God cannot see it!"
But let us provide an answer to Job's question in Job 9:4, "Who has hardened himself against God and prospered?" Not earth and Hell combined can prevent the punishment of one sinner! Proverbs 11:21, "Be sure of this: The wicked will not go unpunished!"

No heart can conceive the terrors of the final judgment. Who, in his right mind, would risk the loss of Heaven, and the suffering of Hell?

"I tell you the truth: Among those born of women, there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of Heaven is greater than he." Matthew 11:11

The least in the Messiah's kingdom, which was just then founded upon earth, are greater than John the Baptist.

John himself, and indeed the Apostles also, until after the resurrection, had very imperfect views of Christ. They saw not, or saw but very faintly:
the dignity of His person,
the necessity of His death,
the certainty of His resurrection,
and the nature of His kingdom.

But now, the most ignorant of Christ's disciples have a comparatively clear, enlarged, and certain knowledge of Him. They know what God has revealed concerning:
His person, as Emmanuel, God with us;
His work, as making a perfect sin-atoning sacrifice, and working out a perfect righteousness, for His people;
and His offices, as the Prophet, Priest, and King of His redeemed people.

In this they are as superior to John, just as John was superior to the least enlightened of all the ancient prophets.

They can tell, not merely what He will do, but what He has done. Yes, they can say, "He has loved me, and given Himself for me!" They have felt the sin-atoning virtue of Christ's blood in purging their consciences from guilt, and the efficacy of His grace in subduing their most inveterate corruptions. They know what it is to receive the blessings which they need, out of His fullness; and how to maintain sweet fellowship with Him from day to day.

They have within themselves the evidence that He is a living, a gracious, and an almighty Savior . . .
who fulfills all His promises to them,
who guides them by His Spirit,
who upholds them by His arm,
who sanctifies them by His grace,
who comforts them with His presence,
and who renders them fit for the enjoyment of His heavenly kingdom!

In all of this, their superiority to John the Baptist, is as the meridian sun compared to the early dawn!

Meditation

(Octavius Winslow, "Gracious Surprisals") LISTEN to audio! Download audio

"My heart grew hot within me, and as I meditated, the fire burned." Psalm 39:3

That is, while I was retracing all the way the Lord had led me;
while I was meditating upon the fullness and preciousness of His Word;
and while I was musing upon the great love with which He had loved me
—the fire in my soul was enkindled.

There are few more powerful aids . . .
to growth in grace,
to progress in sanctification of heart,
and humbleness of mind
—than devout meditation.

"Isaac went out to meditate in the field at evening."

"I meditate on You in the night watches."

Cultivate, my reader, this holy and useful habit.

In a world of incessant action, and in an age of restless excitement—we have great need to imitate these holy examples, and to retire to the "calm retreat, the silent shade," and there abandon ourselves to devout meditation upon divine, heavenly, and eternal things!

"Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful." Joshua 1:8

"His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night." Psalm 1:2

"I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways!" Psalm 119:15

"Oh, how I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long." Psalm 119:97

Practical Predestination!

(Octavius Winslow) LISTEN to audio! Download audio

There are no guesses, conjectures, or contingencies with God as to the future.

Not only does He know all, but He has fixed, appointed, and ordered "all things after the counsel of His own will."

It would seem impossible to form any correct idea of God, disassociated from the idea of predestination. The sole basis of predestination is the 'practical' belief that God is eternal and infinite in and over all.

Predestination is God's pre-determined appointment and fore-arrangement of all things beforehand, according to His divine and supreme will.

God prearranges, predetermines, and supremely rules in all the concerns of our world. He . . .
fixes a constellation in the heavens,
guides the gyrations of a bird in the air,
directs the falling of an autumn leaf in the pathless desert,
and conveys the seed borne upon the wind, to the spot where it should fall.

In predestination we see the everlasting love of God to, and His most free choice of, His people—to be His special and peculiar treasure. What doctrine is more emptying, humbling, and therefore sanctifying—than predestination? It lays the axe at the root of all human boasting! In the light of this truth, the most holy believer sees that there is no difference between him and the vilest sinner who crawls the earth—but what the sovereign grace of God has made.

One blessing accruing from the doctrine of predestination is the sweet and holy submission into which it brings the mind under all afflictive dispensations. Each step of his pilgrimage, and each incident of his history—the believer sees appointed in the everlasting covenant of grace. He recognizes the 'discipline' of the covenant to be as much a part of the original plan as any positive mercy that it contains. That all the hairs of his head are numbered; that affliction springs not out of the earth, and therefore is not the result of accident or chance—but is in harmony with God's purposes of love; and thus ordained and permitted, must work together for his good.

The radiance which predestination reflects upon the entire history of the child of God, and the calm repose which it diffuses over the mind in all the perplexing, painful, and mysterious events of that history—can only be understood by those whose hearts have fully received this doctrine. Whatever betides him; inexplicable in its character, enshrouded in the deepest gloom as may be the circumstance—the believer in this truth can stand still, and, calmly surveying the scene, exclaim: "This also comes forth from the Lord almighty, who is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working. He who works all things after the counsel of His own will has done it—and I am satisfied that it is well done!"